Sunday, June 12, 2011

Kirtland and Mongolia

I, Elder Caldwell, spoke in Sacrament meeting today in the Chardon Branch - the branch we are assigned to attend. It is about 8 miles or so from where our trailer is located.

After the meeting was over, I noticed a couple sort of making a very determined 'beeline' for the front of the chapel, obviously heading in my direction. Seeing them, I just sort of thought, 'Well, they liked the talk and were coming to say thanks.' We still don't know people very well in the branch and so it wasn't surprising that I didn't know who they were.

They reached the stand, walked up to me when I had finished a short conversation with another member, and said (to my shock and surprise), "Sain baino uu!" It took me a minute to realize what I had just heard before I managed to stammer out an appropriate replay.

It seems they were not members of the branch at all. They were just stopping there to attend church on their way to Cumorah, Palmyra, etc. And they had served in Mongolia just before us! They are the Baileys and were the English Department couple before the Hitchmough's, whom we were very good friends with. We actually remembered people mentioning them while we were there.

We talked for 30 minutes or more about all the people we knew there and how was so and so doing, etc. But then we both had to be on our way to other responsibilities.

2 comments:

So how many people did you meet with ties to Mongolia before your mission? NONE! So funny how many you run into now. The couple speaking in our ward today mentioned that their company is opening up some mining in Mongolia and had asked them to apply there (of course, they chose Arizona instead!)